In the wake of his controversial film “The Apprentice,” Iranian-Danish filmmaker Ali Abbasi finds himself at the center of a Hollywood storm that reveals far more about the entertainment industry’s anxieties than his own cinematic ambitions.
When his lead actor, Sebastian Stan was invited to take part in a recent Variety awards season event for the film, he encountered an unexpected roadblock: Hollywood publicists were reportedly reluctant to have their clients discuss the subject of the movie—The Donald. So the event was canned.
“What I heard was that Variety has this Actor and Actor program for the Awards,” Abbasi explains. “The publicists for other actors didn’t want their clients to talk about Trump with Sebastian Stan. They just wanted to avoid that.”
Despite initial disappointment, Abbasi notes that the reception has begun to shift. “Some of my other friends in Hollywood reached out to me saying that if you want us, we’re ready to do it,” he says. And he’s found more support here at the Marrakech International Film Festival where he’s serving on the jury.
“On the other hand, I was talking to Sean Penn yesterday. He was very nice. And started talking about the movie without me knowing,” he adds.
Penn is in Marrakech receiving a career tribute. Abbasi, known for his uncompromising filmmaking style, has built a reputation for challenging narratives that make audiences uncomfortable.
“I’ve heard so many times: why do you insist on showing obscene things or rude things that bother people?” he says.
For Abbasi, those very things that make audiences uncomfortable are precisely the stories that most need telling.
“I don’t like to be a polite filmmaker,” he declares. “I don’t think being polite is a virtue for a filmmaker. Being polite is already being censored. Self-censored.”
He has had repeated experiences of having his work challenged. “Every movie I’ve done has started by someone wanting to censor something about it,” he notes.
Born in Iran and now based in Denmark, Abbasi brings a unique perspective to American politics that is shaped by his experience with authoritarian regimes.
Perhaps his most pointed criticism is reserved for the subject of “The Apprentice” Donald Trump, whom he unequivocally labels a fascist.
“Even if 99.9% of the American populace would vote for Mr. Trump, he’s still a fascist and he will remain a fascist,” Abbasi states.
Drawing from his Iranian background, Abbasi claims to have a keen ability to recognize authoritarian figures. “The one good thing about growing up in Iran is you get very good bullshit detectors,” he says. “I can smell a strongman from miles away. Donald Trump is a strongman with the tactics of a strongman.”
His film “The Apprentice” attempts to humanize Trump without exonerating him—a nuanced approach that has proven controversial. Abbasi quotes his friend and fellow filmmaker Mary Harron, who praised the film’s approach: “By depicting him as a human being, you didn’t let the vulture capitalists or the whole system off the hook.”
Abbasi’s critique of America extends beyond Trump to the broader political landscape. He is particularly critical of what he sees as a credibility crisis in American politics, using President Biden’s pardon of his son as an example. “Bide in the ’90s worked really hard to get that harsh anti-drug bill through the Senate, which got a lot of black people behind bars,” he notes. “Now e wants to give his son a full pardon? As so eone who supports the rule of law, that’s not very credible.”
The filmmaker sees dangerous parallels between current American political dynamics and historical fascist movements. “Ther are many examples in the 1920s and 30s where fascist movements came through democratic channels and took over,” he warns. “That s one of the Achilles heels of democracy—it gives anti-democratic forces a venue to come and take over.”
Abbasi has gained international acclaim for his provocative cinema. His b eakthrough film “Border” (2018) won the Un Certain Regard award at the Cannes Film Festival, establishing him as a significant voice in contemporary world cinema.
His critically acclaimed horror-drama “Holy Spider” (2022) premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in the main competition. His rlier film “Shelley” (2016) was featured at the Sundance Film Festival.
At present, Abbasi is taking a moment to think before choosing his next project, reflecting on the rapid technological and social changes around him. “I fe l like the world has changed so much and I’ve changed,” he says. “This sort of domino effect of developing five things doesn’t work. I thi k we need to draw a line.”
He illustrates this point with a recent observation from Los Angeles: a person sitting in a driverless cab he shared, mindlessly texting, seemingly unaware of the technological marvel surrounding them. “That s where we are,” he concludes, suggesting a profound disconnection in contemporary society.”
He adds: “We’ve gone from being the counterculture to being the asshole elitist who doesn’t want to let people have fun,” he observes.
Censorship is everywhere, he adds. “In Europe, we have institutions paid by taxpayers to make sure the market doesn’t censor us,” Abbasi explains. He vi ws the American market as a self-censoring mechanism, where economic pressures can effectively silence uncomfortable truths.
World Controversial.
“If you follow Khamenei’s rule in Iran, it’s not very different in America,” he says. “I don’t want to make everything relative. There is a difference between the United States and Iran. You k ow nobody’s shot or hanged or goes to do 25 years of jail in the U.S. at least not yet,” he says. “But definitely feel they should be worried.”
As for “The Apprentice” whose subject is a younger Donald Trump becoming a real estate agent—and the film bombing in the U.S.
He says: “I’m disappointed and shocked about the reception in the U.S. of ‘The Apprentice.’ What I’m really shocked about is that the movie is being considered controversial. I’ve sa d this many times, I still don’t understand. I mean, you’re dealing with someone who is like, it’s like he’s the encyclopedia entry of World Controversial, Donald Trump. I don’t know what’s controversial about the movie.”